‘Too reactive’: Rebels lose 2nd-half lead, fall to Colorado State

UNLV was probably comfortable living with Patrick Cartier’s shot. The Rebels were simply playing the odds.

With 2:05 on the clock and UNLV trailing by one, Colorado State kicked the ball out to the fifth-year forward, all alone at the top of the arc. Cartier hadn’t enjoyed any luck from deep all game — 0-for-4. Still, he didn’t hesitate before launching the uncontested 3.

This time, Cartier finally got one to go, swishing home a 3 and putting UNLV in a deficit that proved too much to overcome.

“We became a little too reactive,” UNLV coach Kevin Kruger told reporters. “That’s something, when we play them again, we can try to correct.”

Despite leading by double digits with 13 minutes remaining, UNLV lost to Colorado State 78-75 on Friday at Moby Arena in Fort Collins, Colorado. The Rebels’ past three games have been decided by an average of 2.67 points. UNLV is 1-2 during that stretch.

Kruger — who lost at Colorado State for the first time in three tries — flew to Las Vegas early Friday to be with his wife, Allison, for the birth of their son, Maxwell, then made it back to Fort Collins for the game.

Fifth-year wing Keylan Boone scored 21 points to go with eight rebounds to lead the Rebels (9-8, 2-3 Mountain West). Kalib Boone added 14 points, a block and a steal, while junior guard Jackie Johnson III had 10 points off the bench. UNLV committed 11 turnovers, all in the second half, that turned into 18 Colorado State points.

Senior wing Nique Clifford scored 21 points for the Rams (15-3, 3-2), while preseason Mountain West player of the season Isaiah Stevens had 18 points, made four 3s and handed out seven assists.

“(Stevens) is kind of polarizing in a sense, because he’s so explosive,” Kruger said. “You’re kind of a little nervous at all times if you take a step because he’s so quick, he’s so powerful, he can make shots.”

The Rams — wearing their orange throwback uniforms — started the game hot from deep. Four of Colorado State’s first five made field goals came from beyond the arc and gave Colorado State a quick 14-8 lead.

UNLV’s bench answered the call. Johnson made two quick 3s, and junior forward Rob Whaley Jr. added four points to power a 10-0 Rebels run to reclaim the lead. The Rebels’ bench outscored the Rams’ reserves 12-3 in the first half, behind Johnson’s eight points.

Colorado State answered back through Clifford, who had 11 points before the break, but UNLV’s defense stepped up to close the period out.

The Rams committed six turnovers in the first half. Additionally, Colorado State cooled off on the perimeter. After starting the game 4-for-6 from deep, Colorado State finished the half making just one of its final 10 attempts.

UNLV also got a strong first-half performance from Keylan Boone, whose 13 points led all scorers. He was 4-for-9 from the floor, grabbed four rebounds and had a block in 16 minutes, while also making all four of his free-throw attempts. UNLV led 39-32 at halftime.

The Rebels had a chance to expand their lead in the early minutes of the second half, but were plagued by turnovers. Kalib Boone committed three in the span of about two minutes, but made a pair of free throws to put UNLV up 52-42 with 13:19 remaining.

Stevens finally began to assert himself as UNLV started to pull away. He powered an 8-0 Colorado State run, making a layup and assisting on two more to keep the Rams close, and a Joel Scott layup, his 10th point of the half, tied the game 56-56 midway through the period.

UNLV and Colorado State continued to exchange baskets down the stretch. Another Stevens-assisted layup tied the game 68-68 with 3:17 on the clock to help set up Cartier’s big shot and send UNLV home with another close loss.

“They just kind of got us into a rhythm where we got a little flat-footed,” Kruger said. “Stevens does a good job of that. We just didn’t have the same activity level when they went to that high-ball screen late.”

Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on X.